Morning Star

Francis Maude: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many copies of the Morning Star publication the House subscribes to each week; and at what cost.

Nick Harvey: The House receives seven copies of the Morning Star on sitting days, four copies on non-sitting days and two copies on Saturdays, at a cost of £4.00, £2.20 and £1.00 per day respectively.

Departmental Pensions

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the effect on his Department's expenditure would be from increasing the employee contribution to each pension scheme for which his Department is responsible by one per cent.; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: I refer the Member to the answer given by the hon. Member for West Bromwich, East (Mr. Watson) on 1 May 2008,  Official Report, column 630W.

Departmental Retirement

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the standard retirement age in his Department is; and how many people worked beyond the standard retirement age in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The Department for Work and Pensions has no standard retirement age for staff below the senior civil service.
	The Department has, since October 2003, operated a policy where staff could remain in employment after reaching age 65.
	Numbers of staff employed by DWP, below the senior civil service, aged 65 and over, since 2003 are as follows:
	
		
			  As at 30 September each year  Number 
			 2003 29 
			 2004 124 
			 2005 220 
			 2006 351 
			 2007 511 
		
	
	As at 31 March 2008, the latest date for which data is available, 604 staff in DWP are aged 65 and over.
	 Background  i nformation
	At 31 March 2008 DWP had 113,792 staff (102,371 full-time equivalents), of whom 604 (0.5 per cent.) are aged 65 and over. DWP has 4498 staff aged 60-64 inclusive, 3.9 per cent. of the workforce.
	Staff can retire, if they wish, when they reach civil service minimum pension age. For most staff that is age 60, but they are not obliged to retire at that age and there is no standard retirement age.
	All Departments have delegated authority from Cabinet Office to determine their own retirement age for staff below the senior civil service. DWP was the first Department to abolish mandatory retirement age for all staff below the senior civil service; an important move which supports the Government's agenda of extending working life. 50 per cent. of civil servants now work in Departments which have no retirement age.
	Terms and conditions of employment for staff in the senior civil service are managed centrally by the Cabinet Office. DWP does not have delegated authority to determine their retirement age which remains at 65, consistent with the national default retirement age introduced by the Age legislation.
	Staff aged 65 and over are treated in exactly the same way as all other staff; no special management arrangements are in place.

Income Support: Disabled

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make it his policy to allow claimants of income support with a disability element to receive weekly payments.

James Plaskitt: All claims to income support are currently paid on a weekly basis in arrears.
	From April 2009 all new claims to income support will be paid fortnightly in arrears in line with employment and support allowance (ESA) which will be introduced in October 200S
	Weekly payments will be considered in exceptional circumstances and for up to 26 weeks. A customer's disability would not, of itself, justify weekly payment.

Departmental ICT

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what IT contracts his Department has entered into in the last two years.

Paul Murphy: My Department's main IT services are provided through the Ministry of Justice, but the Wales office let a contract to host our website to Eduserv on 1 December 2007, at a cost of £4,659 initially and £6,936 per year for two years.

Economic and Monetary Union

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales on what date the euro changeover plan of his Department was last updated; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the most recent version.

Paul Murphy: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Under-Secretary of State for Justice, (Maria Eagle) on 17 June 2008,  Official  R eport, column 886W.

Blue Rubicon

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what payments  (a) her Department and  (b) London Resilience has made to Blue Rubicon; at what cost; and for what purpose.

Parmjit Dhanda: For details of payments made to Blue Rubicon before 7 February 2008 I refer the hon. Member to the answer to the Freedom Of Information request published on the Department's website at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/corporate/about/freedom-of-information/disclosure-log/disclosurelog2008/publicrelationsfirms/
	Since 7 February 2008, the Department has paid Blue Rubicon the sum of £222,244.75 for public relations services to continue the promotion of the measures contained in the Energy Performance in Buildings Directive, including promotion of Energy Performance Certificates and Display Energy Certificates.
	No payments have been made to Blue Rubicon by London Resilience.

Departmental Conferences

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will list the conferences hosted by her Department in each of the last two years; and what the cost was of each conference.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department has the following conferences within the last two years.
	
		
			  Date  Event  Cost (£) 
			 17 August 2006 Respect launch 65,000 
			 October 2006 Intra-governmental Group on Geographic Information (IGGI) annual seminar 2006 4,186 
			 5 December 2006 100 Day on reception 1,100 
			 29 January 2007 Towards the Planning White Paper conference 51,230 
			 April/June 2007 Planning Policy Statement 3—Housing regional communication events 10,000 
			 27 July 2007 Planning Delivery Grant Evaluation and Planning White Paper Roll out event 173 
			 September 2007 Analysis for all one day event 2007 1,500 
			 November 2007 Intra-governmental Group on Geographic Information (IGGI) annual seminar 2007 5,170 
			 14 November 2007 Respect and Communities event 60,000 
			 26 February 2008 Incident recording system conference held on 8,682 
			 28 May 2008 Equality and Diversity conference 24,200

Floods: Property Development

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether her Department plans to review current planning applications and assess flood risk and flood defences in respect of any house building, as laid out in Planning Policy Statement No. 25; and if she will make a statement.

Iain Wright: It is not proposed to review current planning applications for housing development in flood risk areas. Local planning authorities have responsibility for deciding these in accordance with the local development plan, unless material considerations indicate otherwise. In arriving at their decisions, account must be taken of all relevant Government policy, including Planning Policy Statement 25 Development and Flood Risk, and all representations made, including any from the Environment Agency.
	Sir Michael Pitt's recent report The Pitt Review: Learning lessons from the 2007 floods (June 2008) included a review of the effectiveness and implementation of the Government's Planning Policy Statement 25. In his interim report Learning lessons from the 2007 floods: Interim Report (December 2007) he concluded the policy in PPS25 is sound but needs to be rigorously applied by planning authorities. In his final report and conclusions he endorsed this, saying
	the operation and effectiveness of PPS25 and the Environment Agency's powers to challenge development should be kept under review and strengthened if and when necessary.
	We are working closely with stakeholders to get PPS25 policy delivered on the ground. We also plan to examine whether there are any barriers to delivery which may be hindering local authorities from implementing PPS25.

Regional Ministers: Manpower

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many full-time equivalent members of staff work for regional Ministers in their capacity as such Ministers; and what the pay scale is of each member of staff.

Parmjit Dhanda: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 22 May 2008,  Official Report, columns 446-50W, by the Secretary of State to the hon. Member for Maidenhead (Mrs. May).

Regional Planning and Development: South East

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what arrangements she plans to make to respond to questions from hon. Members during consultation on her proposed amendments to the draft South East Plan following the adjournment of the House on 22 July; and if she will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Secretary of State will make an announcement on publication of the proposed changes to the draft Regional Spatial Strategy for the South East. This will include the arrangements and procedures for the 12 week consultation period which will be managed by the Government Office for the South East. During the parliamentary summer recess, Members questions will be answered in the normal way.

Parking Attendants

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) traffic enforcement officers,  (b) traffic wardens and  (c) council parking attendants were operating in each police authority area in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: Available data for the numbers of police officers whose primary role is within the traffic function and for the numbers of traffic wardens are given in the following tables. Data on local authority parking attendants and civil enforcement officers are not collected centrally.
	
		
			  Police officers FTE whose main function is 'Traffic'( 1) ,  1996-97 to 2006-07 
			  Full-time equivalent( 2) 
			   1996-97( 3)  1997-98( 3)  1998-99( 4)  1999-2000( 4)  2000-01( 4)  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 Avon and Somerset  216 222 228 215 148 
			 Bedfordshire  75 80 80 81 68 
			 Cambridgeshire  85 99 101 99 96 
			 Cheshire  194 200 194 85 91 
			 Cleveland  64 73 2 61 72 
			 Cumbria  107 110 108 111 114 
			 Derbyshire  107 121 116 119 110 
			 Devon and Cornwall  192 198 211 215 225 
			 Dorset  91 86 82 81 80 
			 Durham  111 119 108 105 100 
			 Dyfed Powys  136 105 141 143 136 
			 Essex  241 242 243 243 231 
			 Gloucestershire  62 66 67 73 67 
			 Greater Manchester  406 392 359 342 352 
			 Gwent  93 95 96 102 95 
			 Hampshire  248 246 244 240 237 
			 Hertfordshire  150 151 149 149 145 
			 Humberside  123 119 225 181 100 
			 Kent  104  122 116 109 
			 Lancashire  198 187 190 197 184 
			 Leicestershire  92 95 85 77 72 
			 Lincolnshire  90 89 96 102 100 
			 London, City of  24 24 28 24 23 
			 Merseyside  125 119 115 138 150 
			 Metropolitan Police  583 592 1029 603 611 
			 Norfolk  120 121 107 112 110 
			 Northamptonshire  70 71 65 63 63 
			 Northumbria  245 253 165 167 172 
			 North Wales  115 114 76 81 98 
			 North Yorkshire  151 138 101 97 99 
			 Nottinghamshire  26 121 133 134 139 
			 South Wales  243 245 243 243 252 
			 South Yorkshire  180 127 134 141 143 
			 Staffordshire  50 49 58 28 35 
			 Suffolk  68 72 76 80 77 
			 Surrey  108 110 107 99 87 
			 Sussex  164 163 163 160 169 
			 Thames Valley  259 259 245 236 237 
			 Warwickshire  103 103 93 97 93 
			 West Mercia  292 115 117 116 129 
			 West Midlands  384 405 393 401 383 
			 West Yorkshire  320 314 317 343 324 
			 Wiltshire  91 96 93 13 89 
			 Total   7,525 7,238 7,005 6,902 6,706 7,104 6,511 6,412 
			 (1) Staff with multiple responsibilities (or designations) are recorded under their primary role or function. The traffic function Includes staff who are predominantly employed on motorcycles or in patrol vehicles for the policing of traffic and motorway related duties. The does not include officers employed in accident investigation, vehicle examination and radar duties. (2) This and other tables contain full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. (3) Data are unavailable for 1996-97 and 1997-98. (4) Data by police force area are not available centrally. 
		
	
	
		
			  Traffic warden strength( 1)  (FTE)( 2)  by police force as at 31 March 1998 to 31 March 2007 
			  Police force  1998  1999  2000  2001( 3)  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Avon and Somerset 114 115 59 48 44 43 34 0 0 0 
			 Bedfordshire 26 10 9 3 3 2 2 0 0 0 
			 Cambridgeshire 33 38 35 38 36 35 17 0 0 0 
			 Cheshire 35 31 25 20 20 19 15 17 0 0 
			 Cleveland 23 18 13 10 12 7 8 0 0 0 
			 Cumbria 21 16 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Derbyshire 53 50 50 44 50 48 43 25 21 12 
			 Devon and Cornwall 115 113 119 110 101 103 102 96 89 47 
			 Dorset 49 42 41 37 12 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Durham 22 21 22 19 19 15 4 0 0 0 
			 Essex 123 121 102 82 59 38 21 8 7 9 
			 Gloucestershire 38 35 35 30 30 31 21 16 14 9 
			 Greater Manchester 189 160 96 88 87 88 88 90 71 32 
			 Hampshire 65 68 53 53 31 25 23 16 7 6 
			 Hertfordshire 55 44 38 45 42 38 9 0 0 0 
			 Humberside 59 52 53 51 51 48 46 45 38 20 
			 Kent 52 31 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Lancashire 110 101 94 87 84 50 17 2 0 0 
			 Leicestershire 75 70 67 65 72 61 51 26 5 1 
			 Lincolnshire 26 22 20 21 21 21 18 20 14 10 
			 London, City of 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Merseyside 115 114 106 93 63 52 43 10 5 38 
			 Metropolitan police 1,166 945 817 689 632 687 505 449 411 317 
			 Norfolk 43 40 37 33 34 33 31 28 26 22 
			 Northamptonshire 25 23 16 11 7 7 5 4 2 1 
			 Northumbria 78 70 70 72 71 59 56 51 48 32 
			 North Yorkshire 23 23 19 12 10 0 10 0 6 3 
			 Nottinghamshire 61 65 58 39 30 29 33 12 4 1 
			 South Yorkshire 80 76 62 71 77 68 37 18 0 0 
			 Staffordshire 35 31 24 17 12 10 1 0 0 0 
			 Suffolk 32 33 31 29 29 25 25 20 18 0 
			 Surrey 25 21 16 25 20 17 8 5 3 0 
			 Sussex 132 113 110 98 62 61 67 62 48 48 
			 Thames Valley 103 95 58 45 51 42 36 24 16 8 
			 Warwickshire 12 10 8 9 9 9 8 4 5 3 
			 West Mercia 35 31 30 23 21 15 13 9 10 6 
			 West Midlands 218 192 175 128 78 74 72 66 51 24 
			 West Yorkshire 129 118 116 107 99 98 85 42 26 12 
			 Wiltshire 19 20 15 7 8 7 5 1 0 0 
			 Dyfed Powys 19 15 14 15 12 13 10 10 8 10 
			 Gwent 33 32 30 28 28 27 25 21 22 23 
			 North Wales 16 15 12 12 8 7 5 4 2 1 
			 South Wales 109 108 100 104 100 99 92 82 77 72 
			 Total England and Wales 3,788 3,342 2,855 2,516 2,233 2,108 1,688 1,281 1,053 764 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items (2) Full-time equivalent excludes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. (3) Boundary changes on 1 April 2000 transferred some resources from the Metropolitan police to Essex, Hertfordshire and Surrey police forces.

Olympic Games 2012: Railways

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the effect on capacity of the national rail network of demand during the 2012 Olympic Games;
	(2)  what assessment she has made of the effects of holding the 2012 Olympic Games on peak hour commuting journeys across the national rail network to and from London during the period of the Games.

Rosie Winterton: The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) is responsible for planning and delivering transport for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The ODA's Olympic Transport Plan, which was published in October 2007 sets out a number of infrastructure improvements to support the delivery of Games-time transport. The ODA is working with train operating companies and Network Rail on developing Olympic Service Delivery Plans based on games-time demand forecasts provided by the ODA. These delivery plans will include transport on peak hour commuter services.

Parking: Disabled

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of those applying for a Blue Badge disabled driver's permit had their application declined in  (a) Chorley,  (b) Lancashire and  (c) the UK between 1987 and 2007.

Rosie Winterton: Since 2002, the Department for Transport has collected data on the proportion of successful Blue Badge applications made to top tier local authorities in England.
	 (a) No data is available at an individual district council level, such as Chorley.
	 (b) In 2006-07, there were 10,743 new applications for Blue Badges in Lancashire. Approximately 6 per cent. were unsuccessful.
	 (c) This compared with 419,268 new applications for Blue Badges in England as a whole in 2006-07. Approximately 12 per cent. were unsuccessful.
	Individual English local authorities may still hold data from 1987 but this is not held centrally. The Scottish Government, the Welsh Assembly and the Northern Irish Assembly also collect separate Blue Badge data for their own administrative areas.

Roads: Surveys

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the expected completion date is for the Office of National Statistics (ONS) survey into public attitudes towards road pricing; and which companies ONS is using to conduct the research.

Rosie Winterton: The ONS Omnibus Survey is ongoing. The research is conducted by ONS, who do not use subcontractors.

Antidepressants

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government has  (a) taken and  (b) plans to take to amend legislation following the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency's report of its investigation into GlaxoSmithKline and the anti-depressant drug Seroxat.

Dawn Primarolo: On 23 May 2008 the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) published a consultation on proposals to amend the Medicines for Human Use (Marketing Authorisations, Etc.) Regulations 1994 to ensure the United Kingdom's legislation is fully in line with existing European Union (EU) law covering the circumstances when marketing authorisation holders should report new information which might influence the evaluation of the benefits and risks for a medicine to the MHRA. The proposed changes state explicitly that marketing authorisation holders should; report information from clinical trials outside the licensed indication, report information arising from third countries and provide a timescale for the reporting of such information.
	Copies of consultation (MLX 350) have been placed in the Library or and are also available on MHRA's website at:
	www.mhra.gov.uk/Publications/Consultations/Medicinesconsultations/MLXs/CON017761.
	The consultation closes on 15 August 2008. Subject to the outcome of consultation, the Government plans to amend legislation before the end of the year.
	In addition, the European Commission is currently formulating proposals to strengthen the EU system for monitoring the safety of medicines. The MHRA has proposed that the EC take this opportunity to introduce a number of additional changes in the light of the investigation into GlaxoSmithKline. We expect European proposals to be published later this year.

Departmental Buildings

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) new builds and  (b) major refurbishments for a cost in excess of 0.5 million were completed by his Department in (i) 2005-06, (ii) 2006-07 and (iii) 2007-08.

Ben Bradshaw: The construction of most health facilities by national health service bodies is undertaken by means of three particular procurement methods. These are the private finance initiative (PR) for hospital facilities, ProCure 21 to deliver public capital funded hospital and primary care facilities, and the local improvement finance trust (LIFT) initiative in respect of primary care and hospital facilities that are commissioned by primary care trusts (PCTs).
	Information on the number of completed projects in these three programmes is given in aggregated form in the table. Detail on the proportion of new build to refurbishment on each project is not routinely collected.
	The figures given do not include those construction projects undertaken by the NHS by means other than the three procurement methods identified. These are predominantly the smaller public capital funded schemes commissioned locally by NHS trusts and PCTs and which are below departmental delegated approval limits.
	
		
			   Number of projects completed 
			 2005-06 129 
			 2006-07 139 
			 2007-08 77 
		
	
	As part of the Department's evidence to the Health Select Committee's 2007 Public Expenditure Inquiry, a survey was undertaken to identify the proportion of new build and refurbishment that featured in major hospital capital projects completed since 1997. An extract is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Question 16: Hospital capital projects completed since 1997 by outline business case (OBC) approval date 
			   Percentage 
			  Strategic health authority  NHS Trust/PCT  Procurement route  Value ( million)  OBC approval date  Of build scheme categorised 'new build'  Of build scheme categorised 'refurbishment' 
			 EM Nottingham University HospitalsQueen's Medical Centre PFI 17 Pre 1997 100 0 
			 SEC Sussex Partnership PFI 22 Pre 1997 100 0 
			 SW Swindon and Marlborough PFI 100 1 December 1993 100 0 
			 NW North Cumbria Acute HospitalsCarlisle PFI 67 1 January 1994 100 0 
			 SC Buckinghamshire HospitalsAmersham PFI 45 1 September 1994 100 0 
			 NE South Tees Acute Hospitals(1) PFI 122 1 October 1994   
			 E of E Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals PFI 158 1 January 1995 100 0 
			 WM Hereford Hospitals PFI 64 1 January 1995 95 5 
			 Lon Bromley Hospitals PFI 118 1 March 1995 100 0 
			 SEC Dartford and Gravesham PFI 94 1 March 1995 100 0 
			 Lon Queen Elizabeth HospitalGreenwich PFI 96 1 April 1995 70 30 
			 Lon St. George's Healthcare PFI 46 1 June 1995 100 0 
			 WM Worcestershire Acute Hospitals PFI 87 1 June 1995 100 0 
			 Lon Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals PFI 54 1 December 1995 100 0 
			 SEC Surrey PCTFarnham PFI 29 1 January 1996 100 0 
			 WM Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health PFI 18 1 May 1996 78 22 
			 Lon Brent PCTWillesden PFI 22 1 September 1996 100 0 
			 E of E East and North Hertfordshire PCT PFI 15 1 October 1996 100 0 
			 Lon Camden and Islington Public capital (PC) 26 1 October 1996 100 0 
			 WM Dudley Group of Hospitals PFI 137 1 November 1996 55 45 
			 Lon North East London Mental Health PFI 11 1 February 1997 100 0 
			 NW Pennine Care PC 24 1 July 1997 75 25 
			 Lon East London and The City Mental HealthNewham PFI 15 1 November 1997 100 0 
			 SW Cornwall PartnershipBodmin PFI 10 17 December 1997 100 0 
			 Y and H Hull and East Yorkshire HospitalsMaternity PFI 22 19 February 1998 100 0 
			 Lon Newham University Hospital PFI 55 1 March 1998 100 0 
			 EM Nottinghamshire Healthcare PFI 19 1 June 1998 97 3 
			 WM Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals PFI 13 1 June 1998 100 0 
			 Lon East London and The City Mental HealthTower Hamlets PC 34 1 September 1998 98 2 
			 SC Buckinghamshire HospitalsStoke Mandeville PFI 47 2 March 1999 93 7 
			 SW Devon PCTTiverton PFI 10 23 April 1999 100 0 
			 Lon West Middlesex University Hospital PFI 60 1 May 1999 100 0 
			 NW East Lancashire HospitalsBurnley(1) PFI 30 1 July 1999   
			 NW Wrightington, Wigan and LeighRoyal Albert Edward Infirmary PC 25 31 July 1999 69 31 
			 SC Berkshire West PCT PFI 19 1 August 1999 100 0 
			 SC Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre PFI 37 1 August 1999 100 0 
			 Lon The Whittington PFI 32 1 October 1999 85 15 
			 NW East Lancashire HospitalsBlackburn(1) PFI 110 31 January 2000   
			 Lon Barts and the London PFI 1,000 1 February 2000 95 5 
			 Lon Barking, Havering and Redbridge Hospitals PFI 238 1 March 2000 100 0 
			 Lon Wandsworth PCTQueen Mary's Roehampton PFI 75 1 April 2000 100 0 
			 NW Central Manchester and Manchester Children's Hospitals PFI 512 1 May 2000 98 2 
			 SC Oxford Radcliffe Hospitalsrelocation PFI 134 1 May 2000 100 0 
			 WM University Hospitals Coventry and WarwickshireWalsgrave PFI 379 1 July 2000 98 2 
			 WM Sandwell and W Birmingham HospitalsCity Hospital PFI 26 1 November 2000 100 0 
			 Lon Kingston Hospital PFI 33 27 November 2000 100 0 
			 SC Portsmouth Hospitals PFI 236 1 December 2000 75 25 
			 Y and H Leeds Teaching HospitalsWharfedale PFI 14 1 January 2001 100 0 
			 Lon Hammersmith HospitalsRenal Centre PC 25 12 April 2001 100 0 
			 WM North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare PFI 28 1 August 2001 100 0 
			 Y and H Leeds Teaching Hospitals PFI 265 1 September 2001 100 0 
			 NE Northumberland, Tyne and WearMorpeth PFI 32 1 November 2001 100 0 
			 NE Tees, Esk and Wear ValleysWest Park PFI 16 30 November 2001 100 0 
			 SEC Brighton and Sussex Universitychildren's hospital PFI 36 1 February 2002 100 0 
			 Lon West London Mental HealthDSPD Broadmoor PC 36 1 March 2002 100 0 
			 SEC Brighton and Sussex University PC 12 1 March 2002 90 10 
			 SW Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership PFI 83 1 May 2002 75 25 
			 Lon Lewisham Hospital PFI 72 1 June 2002 100 0 
			 EM Northamptonshire Teaching PCT PFI 28 29 June 2002 100 0 
			 SC Oxford Radcliffe HospitalsCancer PFI 129 1 August 2002 100 0 
			 WM University Hospital of North Staffordshire/Stoke on Trent PCT PFI 306 1 August 2002 64 36 
			 Lon North Middlesex University Hospital PFI 111 31 August 2002 100 0 
			 SC Hampshire PCTLymington PFI 36 1 September 2002 100 0 
			 NW St. Helens and Knowsley Hospitals PFI 338 25 October 2002 100 0 
			 Y and H Mid Yorkshire HospitalsWakefield and Pontefract PFI 343 31 October 2002 100 0 
			 Y and H Hull and East Yorkshire HospitalsOncology PFI 67 1 November 2002 100 0 
			 NW Blackpool, Fylde and WyreCardiac Centre PC 45 1 January 2003 100 0 
			 Y and H Kirklees PCT PFI 27 1 January 2003 97 3 
			 Lon North West London HospitalsCentral Middlesex PFI 69 1 March 2003 98 2 
			 Lon West London Mental Health PC 14 1 March 2003 100 0 
			 SC Southampton University HospitalsCardiac PC 53 24 March 2003 90 10 
			 SW Taunton and Somerset PFI 21 4 June 2003 100 0 
			 NE Northumberland, Tyne and WearNeuro Disability Centre PFI 37 20 September 2003 100 0 
			 E of E South West Essex Teaching PCT PFI 30 26 November 2003 100 0 
			 EM Lincolnshire Teaching Primary Care NHS Trust PFI 29 1 January 2004 100 0 
			 E of E Ipswich Hospital PFI 36 1 March 2004 100 0 
			 Y and H Hull and East Yorkshire HospitalsCardiac PC 51 1 January 2005 100 0 
			 SC Oxford Radcliffe HospitalsCardiac Centre PC 29 1 March 2005 97 3 
			 SW United Bristol Healthcare/North BristolCardiothoracic Centre PC 64 12 May 2005 100 0 
			 Lon Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children PC 75 14 December 2006 0 100 
			 NW The Cardiothoracic CentreLiverpool PC 49 Post 1997 100 0 
			 SEC Eastern and Coastal Kent Teaching PCT PC 14 Post 1997 100 0 
			 SW Plymouth HospitalsSouth West Cardiothoracic Unit PC 31 Post 1997 100 0 
			 WM Royal Wolverhampton HospitalsHeart and Lung Centre PC 57 Post 1997 100 0 
			 Lon Barnet PCT (Edgware Community)(1) PC 40
			 Average 95.0 5.0 
			 (1) Responses were not received from three organisations (four build schemes in total).  Note: No data is available for the 25 build schemes at foundation trusts.

Departmental Home Working

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff in his Department are authorised to work from home.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department's human resources information system currently records four staff as members of its official home working scheme. The Department also allows staff to work at home on an occasional basis at management discretion. No data is kept on these ad hoc arrangements that enable staff to enjoy a more flexible, family friendly working arrangement.
	Our policy is in line with approaches commonly adopted across the civil service and reflects good practice followed by organisations more widely.

HIV Infection

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps the Government are taking to encourage primary care trusts to devote more resources to HIV prevention;
	(2)  if he will establish a short-term fund to encourage GP surgeries and other healthcare settings to pilot routine HIV testing to reduce the number of undiagnosed cases of HIV;
	(3)  if he will take steps to persuade other health authorities to adopt targets similar to those of the London Strategic Health Authority on the reduction of the incidence of late diagnosis of HIV.

Dawn Primarolo: It is for primary care trusts to decide on their local priorities for funding. The Department published The National Strategy for Sexual Health and HIV (copies of which are available in the Library) in 2001, which highlights HIV prevention as a priority area. The Department has supported local action on HIV prevention through a range of publications focusing on the groups at highest risk including gay men and people from African communities.
	As set out in the Health Inequalities: Progress and Next Steps (copies of which are available in the Library), the Department will be funding new work this year to pilot action to reduce undiagnosed HIV by improving the detection and diagnosis of HIV a variety of settings. The Department has previously funded the Terrence Higgins Trust to pilot the acceptability and effectiveness of community-based HIV and syphilis and this new work will build on the evaluation findings from this earlier work.
	We welcome the work done by NHS London in setting an HIV prevention performance indicator to reduce the incidence of late HIV diagnosis. It is for individual strategic health authorities to decide if they wish to introduce a local indicator on HIV, taking into account local and regional variations in prevalence. The Independent Advisory Group for Sexual Health's review of the Sexual Health and HIV Strategy, will also suggest possible indicators for use at national and local level.

Employment Tribunals

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many claims of discrimination on the grounds of  (a) disability,  (b) gender reassignment,  (c) religion,  (d) sex,  (e) race,  (f) age and  (g) sexual orientation were made to employment tribunals in each of the last 10 years; how many such cases were heard by tribunals in each of those years; and in how many cases heard by a tribunal the claimant was successful in each of those years.

Bridget Prentice: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested is shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Number of discrimination cases received and successful at hearing from 1999-2000 to 2006-07 
			   1999-2000  2000-01 
			   Main jurisdiction mix of claims accepted  Heard at tribunal  Successful at tribunal  All jurisdiction mix of claims accepted( 1)  Heard at tribunal  Successful at tribunal 
			 Sex(2) 4,926 866 233 25,940 1,258 417 
			 Disability 1,743 292 67 4,630 772 185 
			 Race 3,246 632 170 4,238 1,112 220 
			 Religion or belief(3) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) 
			 Sexual orientation(3) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) 
			 Age(4) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) 
			 Total 9,915 1,790 470 34,808 3,142 822 
		
	
	
		
			   2001-02  2002-03 
			   All jurisdiction mix of claims accepted( 1)  Heard at tribunal  Successful at tribunal  All jurisdiction mix of claims accepted( 1)  Heard at tribunal  Successful at tribunal 
			 Sex(2) 15,703 1,136 368 11,001 1,121 363 
			 Disability 5,273 618 137 5,310 678 148 
			 Race 3,889 829 129 3,638 725 115 
			 Religion or belief(3) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) 
			 Sexual orientation(3) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) 
			 Age(4) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) 
			 Total 24,865 2,583 634 19,949 2,524 626 
		
	
	
		
			   2003-04  2004-05 
			   All jurisdiction mix of claims accepted( 1)  Heard at tribunal  Successful at tribunal  All jurisdiction mix of claims accepted( 1)  Heard at tribunal  Successful at tribunal 
			 Sex(2) 17,722 882 306 11,726 1,076 299 
			 Disability 5,655 587 156 4,942 802 236 
			 Race 3,492 761 120 3,317 710 (5)107 
			 Religion or belief(3) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) 
			 Sexual orientation(3) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) 
			 Age(4) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) (5) 
			 Total 26,869 2,230 582 19,985 2,588 642 
		
	
	
		
			   2005-06  2006-07 
			   All jurisdiction mix of claims accepted( 1)  Heard at tribunal  Successful at tribunal  All jurisdiction mix of claims accepted( 1)  Heard at tribunal  Successful at tribunal 
			 Sex(2) 14,250 4,846 4,068 28,153 1,253 463 
			 Disability 4,585 671 173 5,533 640 149 
			 Race 4,103 719 119 3,780 728 102 
			 Religion or belief(3) 486 72 9 648 112 12 
			 Sexual orientation(3) 395 61 14 470 75 21 
			 Age(4) (5) (5) (5) 972 11 0 
			 Total 23,819 6,369 4,383 39,556 2,819 747 
			 (1) Claims may have more than one jurisdiction. The reporting of this information changed in 2004 and for consistency figures are given here for all jurisdictional claims with the exception of 1999-2000 figures which are for principle jurisdiction only. (2) Includes discrimination on grounds of gender reassignment see 'The Sex Discrimination (Gender Reassignment) Regulations 1999' (3) Information is available from 2005-06 onwards following introduction of new legislation. (4) Information is available from 2006-07 onwards following introduction of new legislation. (5) Not collected.  Note: It is not possible to ascertain the numbers of withdrawals at hearing therefore withdrawn appeals are excluded.  Source: Employment Tribunals Service annual report and statistics for the years 1999-2000 to 2005-06 and Employment Appeal Tribunal and Employment Tribunals Service annual statistics 2006-07

Olympic Games

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials from his Department plan to attend the Beijing Olympic games; for what purpose in each case; and what estimate he has made of the cost.

Gareth Thomas: My noble Friend the Minister of state for Trade and Investment will be in Beijing from Thursday 21 August - Tuesday 26 August and will attend the closing ceremony only of the Olympic games.
	The purpose of Lord Jones' visit is to promote British business capability, foreign direct investment and partnership opportunities in general as well as business opportunities arising from the London 2012 games. During his visit Lord Jones will support several key business events and initiatives.

Departmental Public Expenditure

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was spent on  (a) new furnishings,  (b) art and  (c) new vehicles by his Department in each of the last three years.

Michael Wills: The responses for each element of the Department are as follows:
	 MOJ Headquarters
	
		
			  New furnishings 
			million 
			 2005-06 0 
			 2006-07 0 
			 2007-08 0.847 
		
	
	This represents capitalised expenditure; resource expenditure is not separately identifiable. These figures may not include a small amount purchased as part of building upgrades.
	0.502 million of the 2007-08 expenditure relates to technical, advisory, artistic and management fees in respect of the fit-out of the new Supreme Court building at Middlesex Guildhall. The remainder represents furniture for the Ministry's new headquarters building at 102 Petty France.
	 Art
	There has been 95,000 spent on art for the new headquarters building, against a total budget of 470,000. This budget covers four art installations currently works in progress.
	 New Vehicles
	The department leases all vehicles through its Office of Government Commerce contracts; there is no purchasing of new vehicles:
	
		
			  Leased vehicles for MOJ Headquarters, HMCS and tribunals 
			million 
			 2005-06 1.1 
			 2006-07 1.2 
			 2007-08 1.5 
		
	
	 HMCS
	
		
			  Furnishings 
			million 
			 2005-06 0.419 
			 2006-07 0.925 
			 2007-08 1.019 
		
	
	This represents capitalised expenditure; resource expenditure is not separately identifiable. These figures may not include a small amount purchased as part of building upgrades.
	 Art
	This category of expenditure is not separately identifiable.
	 New Vehicles
	Figures included above.
	 Tribunals Service
	
		
			  Furnishings 
			
			 2006-07 (1) 
			 2007-08 (2) 
			 (1) Capitalised nil; non-capitalised 56,000. (2) Capitalised 139,000 (includes 33,000 for storage  systems); non-capitalised 73,000. 
		
	
	 Art
	Nil.
	 New Vehicles
	Figures included above.
	The Tribunals Service did not exist in 05-06, hence no figures provided.
	 HMPS
	 Furnishings
	HMPS policy is to make furniture in-house from raw materials sourced from a range of suppliers, rather than buy the furniture as finished products.
	 Art
	Nil.
	 Vehicles
	Total value of new vehicles purchased in 2007-08 was 3,215,278. This equates to 174 purchased vehicles covering a wide range of vehicle types from pool cars, minibuses, and vans to heavy goods vehicles. It does not include expenditure on mechanical handling equipment such as fork lift trucks, dumper trucks, and tugs.
	HMPS Transport Unit has only been under the direction of the Ministry of Justice since last year and therefore only figures for 2007-08 have been provided.
	 NOMS Centre
	
		
			  Furniture and fittings 
			000 
			 2005-06 31 
			 2006-07 4 
			 2007-08 0 
		
	
	These figures may not include a small amount purchased as part of building upgrades.
	 Art and Leased Vehicles
	These categories of expenditure are not separately identifiable.
	 Purchased vehicles
	Nil
	 Probation Boards
	
		
			  Furnishings 
			000 
			 2005-06 562 
			 2006-07 555 
			 2007-08 0 
		
	
	This represents capitalised expenditure; resource expenditure is not separately identifiable. These figures may not include a small amount purchased as pan of building upgrades.
	 Art
	This category of expenditure is not separately identifiable.
	
		
			  New Vehicles 
			million 
			 2005-06 1.2 
			 2006-07 0.9 
			 2007-08 0.7 
		
	
	 OPG
	
		
			  Furnishings 
			000 
			 2005-06 0 
			 2006-07 0 
			 2007-08 44 
		
	
	 Art
	Nil.
	 New Vehicles
	Nil.
	Central Government Departments actively seek to buy all wood and wood products (including furniture) from legal and sustainable sources. From April 2009, departments will be required to procure legal and sustainable timber or timber licensed under the EU's Forest Law Enforcement, Governance, and Trade (FLEGT) initiative.
	The Government also funds a Central Point of Expertise on Timber (CPET) which provides free advice and guidance to help all public sector buyers and their suppliers meet the policy.

Home Information Packs

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether home information packs have been commissioned by  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies to market a residential property.

Maria Eagle: During the financial year 2007-08, the Ministry of Justice's custodial property sold 12,132,999 of surplus land and property which included approximately 50 houses. These houses were declared surplus to the operational estate. These properties were identified in the answer given by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Justice (Bridget Prentice) to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 7 February 2008,  Official Report, columns 1424-27W. 20 of these were marketed post December 2007 and were therefore sold with home information packs.

Information Commissioner

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the resources available to the Information Commissioner to investigate his workload of complaints promptly.

Michael Wills: The Government are committed to both freedom of information and data protection. An important part of that commitment is ensuring that the Information Commissioner is adequately funded to fulfil all of his statutory responsibilities. The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) and the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) regularly review the resources available to the Commissioner and as part of that dialogue my Department provides constructive challenge to ensure that the ICO delivers maximum efficiency and secures best value for the public money allocated for those statutory responsibilities.
	The ICO's freedom of information work is funded by grant in aid paid through my department. In response to business cases presented by the ICO, in each of the last four financial years my Department has paid the ICO a larger sum in grant in aid than the amount in the original baseline for each year. In addition, my Department is promoting a secondment scheme to assist the ICO in tackling the outstanding backlog of freedom of information cases. Secondees from central Government Departments, paid for by their Departments, will work at the ICO on the outstanding freedom of information cases.
	The Commissioner's data protection work is funded separately through notification fees paid by data controllers under s.26 of the Data Protection Act 1998, which his office retains with the agreement of HM Treasury. In 2006-07, this was 10,200,000.
	As I made clear in my response to the Joint Committee of Human Rights' 22nd Report, the Government are currently considering the Commissioner's case for increased resources for his data protection work. This includes the recommendation of the House of Common's Justice Committee report Protection of Private Data (January 2008) that a graduated fee scale be introduced to replace the current flat fee that applies to all data controllers.
	My Department will continue to ensure that if the ICO is required to undertake additional or new responsibilities then these will be appropriately funded. For example, it was announced in November 2007 that the ICO would carry out spot checks of central Government Departments. The Departments being checked will pay the costs of the spot checks.

Parking Offences

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how much income was derived by local authorities and police authorities from parking  (a) charges and  (b) penalties in each financial year since 1997-98; and what proportion was collected through penalty charge notices in each of these years;
	(2)  how many parking enforcement tickets were issued in each police authority in England in each year since 1997.

Jack Straw: Available information from 1997 to 2006 (latest available) on police issued fixed penalty notices is provided in the table. The data, available on a calendar year basis, do not distinguish between obstruction, waiting and parking enforcements.
	Information on revenue generated from fixed penalties and penalty charge notices is not collected centrally. The fixed penalty information on amount paid in the table does not take into account money generated from action taken as a result of non-payment nor money reimbursed from cases that reached adjudication. No information on amounts paid is collected centrally for penalty charge notices.
	
		
			  Fixed penalty notices issued( 1)  by police force area for obstruction, waiting and parking offences( 2,)( )( 3) , England, 1997  to  2006 
			  Number of offences 
			   Number of tickets 
			  Police force area  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Avon and Somerset 58,114 52,920 49,526 34,552 25,831 22,482 17,652 14,211 10,112 11,067 
			 Bedfordshire 35,469 34,592 5,175 3,487 2,991 3,602 2,235 814 579 777 
			 Cambridgeshire 32,501 28,780 30,387 32,676 33,287 32,237 22,460 9,680 3,240 4,645 
			 Cheshire 32,260 30,186 25,925 19,251 17,532 15,777 15,939 14,842 11,203 11,180 
			 Cleveland 21,700 22,866 18,634 15,487 10,635 15,723 8,522 4,598 2,955 862 
			 Cumbria 20,802 23,164 12,954 5,860 5,758 2,387 1,816 558 609 699 
			 Derbyshire 23,873 25,999 22,926 22,259 18,792 16,411 15,781 13,250 8,432 5,855 
			 Devon and Cornwall 80,535 84,879 77,911 77,877 59,410 59,635 57,701 53,325 44,491 41,985 
			 Dorset 40,725 32,790 32,708 31,259 25,500 8,034 635 371 305 494 
			 Durham 15,041 15,914 12,140 16,084 12,522 12,500 5,668 1,925 1,755 4,183 
			 Essex 59,758 58,928 49,235 40,662 29,773 23,535 9,957 8,204 3,127 3,128 
			 Gloucestershire 33,418 31,067 28,468 28,528 26,500 26,411 27,704 21,889 14,503 14,521 
			 Greater Manchester 166,249 141,898 78,849 71,059 43,383 34,823 27,964 21,646 13,303 8,893 
			 Hampshire 70,480 66,256 50,945 31,627 40,024 22,699 18,392 13,792 12,022 7,427 
			 Hertfordshire 52,956 31,222 36,066 32,577 32,712 27,054 9,217 6,496 2,335 1,525 
			 Humberside 29,030 25,993 23,912 26,598 25,704 26,506 25,504 27,068 28,256 15,967 
			 Kent 65,044 58,712 48,758 3,685 1,712 1,090 985 953 783 820 
			 Lancashire 94,883 82,845 71,464 64,935 55,998 47,733 31,779 17,717 1,939 1,717 
			 Leicestershire 53,343 49,080 45,725 37,990 39,888 41,654 31,024 20,357 4,126 20,993 
			 Lincolnshire 29,067 26,650 15,488 15,895 15,725 16,659 18,563 18,201 14,362 11,631 
			 London, City of 666 1,109 728 438 513 741 681 188 238 235 
			 Merseyside 98,235 97,522 86,924 61,249 49,971 35,992 17,602 13,648 17,038 13,946 
			 Metropolitan Police 160,851 205,877 192,110 196,992 141,797 141,968 209,221 162,463 27,739 25,006 
			 Norfolk 36,350 30,755 26,389 25,339 23,880 10,138 9,532 8,109 7,175 n/a 
			 Northamptonshire 29,576 27,854 21,274 12,874 7,988 4,457 3,701 2,197 2,037 3,072 
			 Northumbria 47,599 45,656 40,384 44,696 57,804 48,685 30,439 42,426 19,700 17,543 
			 North Yorkshire 22,132 19,977 20,439 13,531 14,435 9,436 5,670 7,031 5,881 5,099 
			 Nottinghamshire 42,023 37,006 34,871 31,527 24,515 13,387 6,635 7,676 4,490 5,369 
			 South Yorkshire 28,260 30,854 26,705 28,948 30,366 29,362 27,556 18,873 6,067 1,293 
			 Staffordshire 26,456 27,468 21,260 11,941 9,161 7,276 8,411 9,348 9,919 9,666 
			 Suffolk 23,043 21,758 20,575 20,839 18,953 20,440 20,197 20,119 14,388 5,421 
			 Surrey 25,620 25,407 20,550 21,435 22,962 25,044 16,130 9,717 7,449 3,892 
			 Sussex 120,257 111,866 101,976 119,771 71,971 47,516 46,183 48,178 45,199 41,087 
			 Thames Valley 77,977 76,949 66,457 51,921 37,414 34,611 24,785 22,121 20,478 5,787 
			 Warwickshire 15,551 18,022 16,749 13,802 15,355 16,556 14,041 13,037 10,975 8,930 
			 West Mercia 26,225 26,142 28,690 22,737 17,108 17,384 12,454 9,198 6,412 5,804 
			 West Midlands 156,274 148,970 119,890 88,154 64,048 46,446 53,133 46,138 33,695 27,463 
			 West Yorkshire 69,618 63,563 60,342 61,144 55,303 55,982 54,178 55,016 38,017 22,928 
			 Wiltshire 16,030 15,454 12,897 10,211 7,451 8,395 5,618 2,388 2,792 2,206 
			 England 2,037,991 1,956,950 1,656,406 1,449,897 1,194,672 1,030,768 915,665 767,768 458,126 373,116 
			
			 Dyfed-Powys 14,460 14,176 18,032 17,483 13,863 17,081 13,780 9,482 10,208 10,175 
			 Gwent 20,884 22,116 20,668 19,590 17,765 19,041 19,714 17,316 14,414 17,450 
			 North Wales 21,752 19,181 16,473 16,080 13,127 10,584 12,272 8,729 6,638 4,971 
			 South Wales 104,155 105,654 96,574 92,310 85,622 87,532 81,575 79,205 84,111 84,236 
			 Wales 161,251 161,127 151,747 145,463 130,377 134,238 127,341 114,732 115,371 116,832 
			
			 England and Wales 2,199,242 2,118,077 1,808,153 1,595,360 1,325,049 1,165,006 1,043,006 882,500 573,497 489,948 
			 n/a = data not available. (1) Paid i.e. no further action. For 2006. Norfolk police were unable to submit data due to technical reasons. (2 )Offences under the Road Traffic Act 1988 s.22; Transport Act 2000 ss.173 (5); 173 (6); 173 (7); 174 (3); 175 (2); 175 (3); 175 (4); 100 Highway Act 1835 ss 72 4 78; RTA1888 ss. 19 * 21; Highways Act 1980 s. 137 (1); Road Traffic Regulations Act 1984 ss 5 (1), 8, 32-38 and 45-53; Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 Regs. 101 and 103: Transport Act 2000 Part III; Metropolitan Police Act 1839 s. 54 (1). (3) Does not include Decriminalised Parking Enforcements (DPE).  Note: Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, It is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

Taxation: Self-assessment

Michael Spicer: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the cost of an enquiry into self assessment tax returns HM Revenue and Customs will pay, with particular reference to those which show no irregularities; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 1 July 2008
	 As a general rule, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) do not pay or reimburse the costs that a person incurs in meeting their taxation obligations; this includes costs of complying with an enquiry into a return.
	However, where HMRC mistakes or unreasonable delay have added to those costs unnecessarily, the Department will consider the matter under its ex gratia redress policy and reimburse reasonable amounts that have arisen directly from its mistakes or unreasonable delay. HMRC makes every effort to keep down its customers' compliance costs and to limit enquiries and requests for information to what is strictly necessary. It is an undertaking to customers stated in HMR's codes of practice and other publications. There are no set amounts or percentages available as decisions are made on a case by case basis.

Communication Skills: Young Offenders

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what information his Department holds on the oral communication abilities of people in young offender institutions; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: While the Government have made no formal assessment of oral communication abilities, we are aware of research which estimates that 60 per cent. of young offenders have speech, language and communication needs. Young people admitted to the secure estate are assessed for their health and well-being and educational needs. A new reception health screen for young people has been developed by the Youth Justice Board. The new health screen contains a section looking specifically at disability and impairment, which contains a question designed to identify speech difficulties in young people entering custody. Young people in young offender institutions with special educational needs are supported by special educational needs coordinators and by learning support assistants.

Departmental Vetting

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of successful applicants for jobs in his Department are subjected to a criminal records check; how many  (a) successful applicants and  (b) criminal records checks there were in each of the last 10 years; how many successful applicants were found to have a criminal record after a criminal records check took place in each of the last 10 years; whether the selection of successful candidates to be subjected to a criminal records check is random or targeted; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: My Department was formed as a result of Machinery of Government changes in June 2007 from its predecessor the Department for Education and Skills.
	All individuals recruited to either Department over the last ten years are subject to a basic criminal records check. As part of the application process individuals complete a self-declaration of their criminal records.
	In line with the HMG baseline personnel security standard the Department undertakes a full independent check of unspent criminal records for all successful applicants, who are not in a regulated post.
	The numbers, by year, of applicants who have been checked is not held centrally and is only available at disproportionate cost.
	In addition to the baseline security checks, the Department has completed Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks for employees, since 2002 when they became a requirement. All individuals recruited to a regulated post, or to a post where they have access to personal or sensitive data about children or vulnerable adults, have been subject to, or are currently undergoing, targeted enhanced CRB check, as a matter of course.
	Since 2002, the Department has completed approx 650 enhanced CRB checks for its employees. These checks were undertaken for existing staff who moved around within the Department to posts which required CRB checks and also for new appointees to the Department who were recruited into posts which required CRB checks.

Secondary Education: Colchester

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what discussions he has had with Essex County Council on secondary school provision in Colchester constituency in the last month; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: My officials have not had any further discussions with Essex county council, on secondary school provision in Colchester since 22 May. In my response to your letter to the Secretary of State on 4 June, regarding Alderman Blaxill School and Thomas Lord Audley College, I stated that the local authority was looking at the practicalities of a federation of these two schools along with Stanway School, with the possibility of an overarching trust. As I understand it, there has been no change in this position since then. Ultimately, decisions on school organisation are for local authorities.

Departmental Assets

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills over what period his Department depreciates the asset value of its  (a) vehicles,  (b) computer hardware,  (c) bespoke computer software,  (d) standard computer software,  (e) furniture and  (f) telecommunications equipment.

David Lammy: The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills was established under Machinery of Government changes in June 2007, the Accounting Policies for the Department for 2007-08 have been merged from the pre-existing Department for Education and Skills and the Department of Trade and Industry Accounting Policies. The Department's Resource Account's are currently being audited by the National Audit Office.
	The Department depreciates the aforementioned asset categories over the following periods:
	
		
			   Years 
			  (a) Vehicles 2 to 10 
			  (b) Computer hardware 3 to 10 
			  (c) Bespoke computer software 2 to 5 
			  (d) Standard computer software 2 to 5 
			  (e) Furniture 7 to 10 
			  (f) Telecommunications equipment 3 to 10 
		
	
	This information has been taken from the Department's Accounting policy note that will form part of the Resource Accounts. The financial statements are prepared in accordance with the Government Financial Reporting Manual (FReM) issued by HM Treasury.

Departmental Buildings

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how frequently his Department restates the asset values of its building estate.

David Lammy: The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills was established under Machinery of Government changes in June 2007, the Accounting Policies for the Department for 2007-08 have been merged from the pre-existing Department for Education and Skills and the Department of Trade and Industry Accounting Policies. The Department's Resource Accounts are currently being audited by the National Audit Office.
	The Department restates the value its building estate in accordance with the requirements of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors every five years at existing use value. Where appropriate, indices issued by the Office for National Statistics have been applied in intervening years. This information has been taken from the Department's accounting policy note which will form part of the resource accounts.

Iraq: Christianity

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment his Department has made of the situation of the Christian minority communities in Iraq; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: Like all sectors of Iraqi society, the Christian community has been affected by the unacceptable level of violence in Iraq which continues despite improvements in the overall security environment. Our diplomatic missions and my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's Special Envoy on Human Rights in Iraq (Ann Clwyd MP) regularly raise with the Government of Iraq the need for adequate protection of all minority groups.
	Progress on national reconciliation is the fundamental requirement to create a sustainable and secure environment for all Iraqis and we continue to support the Government of Iraq in efforts to achieve that goal.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government have made to Iran since January 2008 on using its influence to try to secure the release of the Israeli soldiers kidnapped by  (a) Hamas and  (b) Hezbollah in June and July 2006; what representations he has received since January 2008 about this issue; what response he gave; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: The UK has not made any specific representations to the Iranian government on this issue. And while the fate of the three captured soldiers is a regular part of the UK's dialogue with a range of partners, including Israel, Egypt and the UN, we have not received any direct representations about this issue. However, we would encourage all who have influence to use that responsibly to ensure the safe release of these soldiers.
	We believe that the most effective way to achieve the release of the soldiers captured by Hizbollah is to support efforts by the UN to mediate between the parties as part of the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701. We continue to support the efforts of the Governments of Israel, Egypt and others to negotiate the release of Gilad Shalit.

Congo Basin Fund

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much of the Congo Basin Fund has been allocated for the manufacture of a satellite monitoring system by the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory; and what organisation will operate the system once launched in 2010.

Gareth Thomas: Funds from the Congo Basin Forest Fund have not yet been allocated. However, the UK has allocated an additional 8 million to support start-up projects that have an immediate impact on the lives of people that live in the rainforest. One of the start-up projects includes allocation of funding of up to 1.14 million for a British-made high-resolution camera made by the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory and 1.5 million for the first ever satellite data receiver in Central Africa so that images can be easily accessed by the Governments and civil society in the region and help provide evidence against illegal loggers. Technical discussions are ongoing.